The List: 22 Aug 2002 (Issue 449)

Stuck not knowing how to sort your artwork out? Why not arrange it according to colour? That’s what they’re doing in GREYSCALE/CMYK. Words: Susannah Thompson

f you like your exhibitions big. ambitious and intemational.

then Glasgow’s Tramway is the place for yotr. After the

recent success of Mirror '3‘ Edge and 7me Object Complete with Missing Paris. the southside venue is hosting (ht'y.s‘(‘ulc/(‘MYK. a group show of over 40 leading artists from Scotland. Ireland and the Nordic countries. Among them are Glasgow‘s Martin Boyce. Roderick Buchanan and Jim Lambie whose creations will be on show alongside newly commissioned work by Sophie Macpherson and recent Beck’s Futures winner Toby Paterson. Together. they represent a barometer of contemporary European art.

As ever. one of the most intriguing aspects will be to see how the monumental Tramway space has been filled. particularly when the exhibition draws together such a hugely diverse group of artists. The work. which will be placed within a specially designed architectural intervention by ()CEANNORTH. ranges from film and video to music and sound-based pieces such as Perti Raappana‘s interactive works for nightclubs. Look out also for Jonathan Monk‘s High School Boogie Wrmgit’. reminiscent of a Rubik‘s cube in its treatment of abstract square patterns as an endless mathematical series.

The origins of (htﬁvst'ulc/CMYK lie in an initiative by the Nordic Council of Ministers to encourage cultural exchange across the disciplines of visual art. literature. theatre. music and film under the banner of Network North. The visual arts branch

took the task to heart. creating a dynamic programme of residencies. exchanges and exhibitions. And Glasgow is one of

the beneficiaries.

This latest exhibition takes its name from graphic design terms denoting black. white and tonal variations (greyscale). or cyan. magenta. yellow and black (CMYK). Curator Rebecca Gordon-Nesbitt has separated the exhibited work on that basis.

Where other themed exhibitions seek to unite artists in terms of

medium. gender.

nationality. subject matter or

12 THE LIST 2? Aug-4'; Set) ?()()2

(ire-vsr‘alc/C/VIYK has a premise — colour to the left. monochrome to the right — that initially sounds simplistic. But fear not. This gentle subversion of the themed show is entirely deliberate.

‘Separating works on this basis reduces them to their lowest common denominator which. it could be argued. is the tendency of thematic exhibitions.‘ says Gordon-Nesbitt. ‘But by exposing this — and in turn the curatorial subjectivity it implies — it is hoped that the twin exhibitions will allow individual works to speak for themselves.’

So is (irevsr'alc a critique or even a spoof of themed shows'.’ Perhaps. But Gordon-Nesbitt prefers to describe the project as ‘two-way traflic’. Many of the artists have taken part in exchanges. and some. such as Ross Birrell. have made their work during a Network North residency. Similarly. the Icelandic Love Corporation. which was resident in Glasgow in January and February. will return to the city to present a performance on the opening night. Jakob Kolding and Tor Magnus Lundeby will be producing new work for the show. while Ross Sinclair will be presenting Excerpts/ion: USA ()2 (part of the Black Flag series).

Not only is it great news for gallery visitors. btrt also for artists. Granule/CMYK is an ideal opportunity to exchange ideas. ‘Culturally—driven relationships exist between certain countries.’ says Caroline Woodley of Network North. ‘()ur intention is to develop these relationships. to establish outward looking arts communities: not marginalised. not uninformed. btrt enlivened by mobility and conversation.‘

Greyscale/CMYK is at Tramway, Glasgow, Fri 30 AugaSun 20 Oct.

‘Separating works on this basis reduces them to their lowest common denominator’

Above: She’s Lost Control by Jim Lambie, Courtesy Sadie Coles H0, London; from top right, two images of OCEANNORTH’s plans for the exhibition; Hang Ten Sunset by Katarina Lofstrom; and Untitled by Jacob Kolding